Ganoderma lucidum (Japanese name: Reishi) is widely used in Chinese traditional medicine as a dietary supplement. Ethnopharmacological studies of this ancient medicinal mushroom have shown that the triterpene extract and its components possess antiandrogenic,1 anticomplement,2 antihistamine,3 anti-inflammatory,4 antinociceptive,5 antioxidant6 and hypocholestremic7 properties and inhibits the growth and proliferation of cancer cells.8 
For example, Hattori and coworkers examined the inhibition of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) by a range of fungal natural products. A methanol extract of the fruiting bodies of Ganoderma lucidum was reported to show moderate inhibitory effects against HIV-1 and its protease.10a In a primary screen for anti-HIV activity, ganodermanontriol (1) and ganoderiol F inhibited HIV-1-induced cytopathic effect in MT-4 cells; the activity was specific to the Δ7,9(11)-lanostadienes.10a A subsequent study was reported to show that ganoderic acid β, lucidumol B, ganodermanodiol, and ganodermanontriol appear to have significant inhibitory activity against recombinant HIV-1 protease and that the hydroxyl groups at C-23 or C-24 and C-25 may be essential for strong HIV-1 protease activity.10b Ganodermanontriol, as well as other triterpene alcohols, had significant anticomplement activity against the classical pathway (CP) of the complement system with IC(50) values of 17.2 μM.2 The potency of triterpene alcohols in inhibiting CP activity reportedly improves when the number of side-chain hydroxymethyl groups increased.
G. lucidum triterpenes also inhibit the invasive behavior and proliferation of breast and prostate cancer cells through the down-regulation of cyclin-D1 expression and suppression of urokinase plasminogen activator (UPA) secretion.11 It has been discovered herein that G. lucidum triterpene extract reduces proliferation of estrogen-dependent (MCF-7), and estrogen-independent (MDA-MB-231) breast cancer cells, possibly by the modulation of the estrogen receptor and NF-κB signaling.8b They inhibit growth, induce apoptosis, and suppress angiogenesis of breast, prostate, hepatoma, and colon cancer cells through a variety of mechanisms including the upregulation of p21 and Bax expression, suppression of protein kinase C, activation of caspase-3, and inhibition of secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and transforming growth factor-1 (TGF-1), respectively.11 Ganodermanontriol suppressed proliferation of human colon cancer cells in vitro and inhibited tumor growth in a xenograft model of colon cancer in vivo.10c 
Over 150 highly oxygenated triterpenes have been reported from G. lucidum, however purification of novel steroids from the fruiting bodies of G. lucidum is reportedly unreliable due to variability of the natural product composition resulting from environmental and geographic factors, age, and handling. In addition, the content of the terpenoid acids and alcohols in G. lucidum tissue and spores has been shown by HPLC with UV detection to fluctuate widely depending on the growth substrate.9 In addition, evaluation of the health effects of Ganoderma triterpene products that are widely used for alternative health care are confounded by the lack of standardization and characterization of the extracts. Ganodermanontriol (1, Scheme 1) is typically the dominant bioactive alcohol in Ganoderma extracts.9 Accordingly, a need exists for a synthetic process for preparing Ganoderma alcohols, and related compounds for detailed evaluation.
In one illustrative embodiment of the invention, described herein is a method for preparation of ganodermanontriol. In another embodiment, described herein is a method for preparation of the stereoisomeric triols of ganodermanontriol. In another embodiment, described herein is a method for preparation of the various analogs of ganodermanontriol, including higher and lower homologs, alternative substituents, including halo and amino groups, and the like. In another embodiment, described herein are methods for treating cancer.